thechurchofgodinchristwikiaorg-20200214-history
Ted G. Thomas, Sr.
'''Bishop Ted G. Thomas, Sr. '''is a bishop in the Church of God in Christ and is a member of the General Board of the COGIC. Bishop Ted Thomas is the Prelate of theFirst Jurisdiction of Virginia and is the pastor of both the New Community Temple C.O.G.I.C.(Portsmouth, Virginia) and the Saint Stephen's C.O.G.I.C.(Virginia Beach, Virginia). He was elected to the General Board in November of 2012. Early Life Bishop Ted G. Thomas, Sr. was born in Raeford, North Carolina on October 19, 1935 to the late Elder Simuel Thomas and the late Mother Nancy Thomas. Elder and Mother Thomas chose to teach him the ways of holiness and sanctification to God. When he was eight years old, he & his parents moved to Norfolk, Virginia. As a child, Ted Thomas studied the word of God and lived according to the Holy Bible. According to his testimony, when he was nine years old, God spoke to him in a dream much like He did the Biblical prophet Samuel, and told him he was going to be a great preacher and "Bishop" to preside over many churches. From then on he decided to live a very Godly life in Jesus Christ, and personally accepted Christ as his savior at the age of ten. Education After graduating high school, he matriculated at the Norfolk State University. t was at this time when he was attending Norfolk State that he met Charletta Clifton and became good friends with her. He later postponed his education and married Charletta in 1957. His parents were disappointed in him for doing so and not continuing with his education until he graduated, so he made a promise to his parents that he would one day go back and continue his education. He graduated from college with a Bachelor's Degree in the Arts, a Doctorate Degree in Divinity/Theology, and a Master's Degree in Math and Science. Beginning of his Christian Ministry in the Church Charletta Thomas so happened to be the granddaughter of the "first Bishop" of the First Jurisdiction of Virginia of the Church of God in Christ, Reverend Charles Cypress. With this, he gained favor in the eyes of Rev. Cypress and was able to start a his own ministry under his father-in-law, Reverend Junius Clifton. Rev. Clifton appointed then Elder Thomas as the assistant pastor of Clifton's Tabernacle Church of God in Christ. He served faithfully under his father-in-law until he relocated to pastor another church in 1967. After his relocation, Elder Thomas changed the name of Clifton's Tabernacle to New Community Temple C.O.G.I.C. Also, during this time, Mother Thomas gave birth to Ted Thomas' six sons: Ted Jr., Jonathan, Marc, Charles, Reuben, and Christopher. Life as a Bishop in the Church of God in Christ After years of being the pastor of New Community, Bishop David C. Love (the sixth bishop of the Virginia First Jurisdiction) appointed Elder Thomas to the office of Superintendent to preside over the Central District of the First Jurisdiction of Virginia. For many years he remained Superintendent of the Central District and Pastor of New Community. Sadly, after 49 years of presiding over the First Jurisdiction, Bishop Love passed away in 1984. After his untimely death, the Presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ, Bishop James Oglethorpe (J. O.) Patterson, Sr. appointed him to succeed Bishop Love as the Bishop of the First Jurisdiction of Virginia. He is still serving as the Bishop of the First Jurisdiction to this day. In 1991, Bishop Thomas became the pastor of our church, Saint Stephen's Church of God in Christ here in Virginia Beach, Virginia, after the death of Reverend Thurlian Burden. He still remains the pastors of both Saint Stephen's and New Community Temple to this day. On November 12th, 2012, Bishop Ted Thomas was elected to the General Board of the Church of God in Christ. Secular Accomplishments With his many religious accomplishments, Bishop Thomas has also had many secular accomplishments as well which include: #Being the co-proprietor of Carver Memorial Cemetery in Suffolk, Virginia. #Being a math teacher at Ruffner High School and later becoming the head principal of the school. #Being a member of the Advisory Board of Virginia's Bank of the Commonwealth Videos Category:General Board Members